Squash Teams Win First Home Matches of Season Over Williams

Sunday, November 24

Kline & Specter Squash Center

10:00 a.m.

Drexel University

Williams

Squash Teams Win First Home Matches of Season Over Williams

11/24/2013 2:03:00 PM | Men's Squash, Women's Squash

MEN'S RESULTS WOMEN'S RESULTS

PHILADELPHIA - After two days of tough results in their first home matches of the season, the Drexel men's and women's squash teams earned their first victories at the Kline & Specter Squash Center this season, both winning late in 5-4 victories over Williams. Ibrahim Bakir on the men's side and Kaitlyn Money on the women's side won the clinching matches for the Dragons.

The women went first, with Drexel controlling the action at the top of the ladder. Damindhi Udangawa won in straight sets at No. 1, while Mary Fung-A-Fat remained undefeated on her young collegiate career at No. 2, winning in four sets 11-8, 7-11, 11-3, 11-7. Elisa Money rounded out the top three with a straight sets win at No. 3, 11-5, 11-9, 11-6.

Although Williams controlled the bottom part of the ladder, the Dragons did get one critical victory at No. 8, where Courtney Sabo bounced back from a third set loss for an 11-7, 11-7, 10-12, 11-5 win.

Needing a fifth win to seal the victory for Drexel, Kaitlyn Money was on the court at No. 5 against Ellen Coombe of Williams. Money handled the first set with ease, 11-3, before dropping the second set, 5-11. Coombe put up a strong fight in the third, but after Money pulled out an 11-9 win, the Drexel sophomore pulled away for an 11-6 win in the fourth set.

The win evened the Drexel women's record at 2-2 after they had won their season opener against Johns Hopkins and dropped both previous matches at home over the weekend.

On the men's side, the Dragons rolled out to an early 4-2 lead, and threatened to grab a more lopsided win over Williams before the visitors charged back. Drexel won four of the first six matches on the court with Michael Thompson and Mark Kauf winning in four sets at Nos. 3 and 4, respectively. Noel Solomon had a straight sets win at No. 6, although he was tested in the first and third sets, winning 11-9, 11-4, 13-11.

Nat Fry also won at the No. 9 position, getting the Dragons a much-needed point at the bottom of the ladder. Fry, who won for the third time in his freshman season, grinded his way to an exciting five-set win, dropping the first set 9-11 before winning the next two, 11-4 and 13-11. Tyler Conroy for Williams rebounded for a fourth-set win, 11-9, but in a hard-fought fifth set, Fry responded for an 11-9 win of his own to earn the point.

The last players on the courts were the No. 1's for each team, Ibrahim Bakir for Drexel and Jamie Rizzero of Williams. With Williams having evened the overall score at 4-4, Bakir needed to win for the Dragons to get their second victory of the season. He lost the first set, 13-11, but responded strong for three straight set wins, 11-8, 11-7, 11-3 to capture the match and the deciding point.

Drexel will now enjoy more than a week off before the Dragons welcome in their former assistant coach, Sean Wilkinson, and his charges from Princeton. The men will play on December 3 at the Kline & Specter Squash Center, while the women will play the next day in the same place.